Bicyclist struck and killed by Modesto driver Friday identified as homeless woman

Authorities have identified the bicyclist who died Friday after being struck by a sport utility vehicle near Graceada Park as a 36-year-old homeless woman.

Rosanna Petrushkin was the 15th person to die in Modesto this year in a traffic accident, Lt. Dan Starr has said. Six involved vehicles vs. pedestrians and two were vehicles vs. bicyclists.

The accident happened around 7 p.m. at Park Avenue and Needham Street. Police Department spokeswoman Sharon Bear said Petrushkin was hit by a 2015 Cadillac SRX driven by a 29-year-old Modesto man. The Cadillac was heading west on Needham.

She said police continue to determine who was at fault. Officers are reviewing video footage and should conclude the investigation within two weeks. Bear said there were no known witnesses. According to police, there was no evidence the driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The SUV driver stayed at the scene and cooperated with officers. According to Bear, he rendered aid to Petrushkin until first responders arrived. “He was pretty distraught,” Bear said about the driver.

Petrushkin was taken to a hospital, where she died from her injuries.

The Stanislaus County Coroner’s Office identified Petrushkin and said police identified her as a transient. The Coroner’s Office said her last known address was in Modesto.

Petrushkin was outgoing, adventurous, would strike up a conversation with anyone and was a high school athlete, said her sister, Ashley Carey, in a phone interview Tuesday.

Carey said the two of them grew up in Fresno. Carey, 34, said Petrushkin was kind and as her big sister looked after her, but she had not seen her sister in about a decade after Carey moved to Pennsylvania.

Carey said Petrushkin’s contact with her and other family members was infrequent in the last several years after Petrushkin became homeless. She communicated with her sister about twice a year over Facebook and would not go into details about Petrushkin’s life.

“I don’t know what she got into that got her to be homeless,” Carey said. “... I don’t know what happened to her, honestly.”

Carey said her sister is survived by a son and a daughter but did not have custody of them.

Stanislaus Superior Court records show Modesto’s City Attorney’s Office filed eight complaints against Petrushkin this year for violations of the city’s municipal code. All of them were for being in Enslen or Graceada parks after hours and for camping there or for camping on private property.

Six of the complaints were dismissed June 30 at the city’s request. Petrushkin pleaded no contest in two of the complaints. She entered her last no contest plea Oct. 20.

Superior Court records show one previous offense, a 2016 theft charge from a Turlock retailer.

Anyone with information about this accident is asked to contact Officer Brad Beavers at beaversb@modestopd.com. Tips can also be submitted through Crime Stoppers at 209-521-4636.